Older Homes in Hialeah & Little Havana: Rats, Roaches, Gaps

When rats or roaches show up in an older block home in Hialeah or Little Havana, it doesn't mean the house is dirty. It means decades of add-ons, window A/C units and patched plumbing have opened gaps, and older homes have plenty of them. The good news is that you can find most of those gaps in one afternoon walk around the house. Some you can close yourself, and the entry points rats use, we seal ourselves. Start with the A/C in the window, the roofline where the addition meets the house, and the space under the sinks.

The walk-around, gap by gap

Go around the house slowly, outside first, then inside.

• The window A/C unit. The gap around the frame lets in roaches and, up high, rats. You: foam or a fitted panel around the unit.
• Jalousie and old windows. Louvers that don't close all the way and torn screens let roaches and other bugs in. You: replace the screens and the worn seals.
• Where the addition meets the main roof. The seam between the efficiency or back room and the old roof is a favorite way in for roof rats. Us: we inspect it and seal the entry points.
• Soffits and roof vents. Older vents and soffit gaps are a common way into the attic. Us: we seal the openings rats are using.
• The converted garage door. The gap under an old garage door, or around a wall built inside it, lets in roaches and rodents. You: a door sweep or weatherstripping.
• Pipes under sinks and behind the toilet. Patched plumbing leaves gaps where American roaches come up. You: caulk around small pipe gaps. Us: we treat those spots.
• A/C lines, cable and utility holes. Where lines go through the wall, the hole is often bigger than the line. Us: we seal the ones rats use.
• Doors without sweeps. Daylight under a door is an invitation. You: add a sweep.

Roaches and the gaps in an older house

The big roaches you see in older homes are usually American cockroaches, the ones people call palmetto bugs. They come in through plumbing, drains and door gaps. In a duplex, the shared wall works like a highway, so treating only one side often just pushes roaches next door. When both owners or the landlord can coordinate, we treat both units.

What we do

We start with an inspection. Then we set traps and tamper-resistant bait stations, and we seal the gaps rodents are using with exclusion work, trapping first and sealing as the activity is handled. Inside the home we use traps only, never loose bait. Bait stations stay outside. We seal the entry points ourselves, but we don't do repairs: a rotted soffit, a broken roof tile, a failing window or an old A/C unit is a job for your contractor. We'll tell you how many visits your home is likely to need. For roaches, we use bait and crack-and-crevice treatment in the kitchen, the bathrooms and the plumbing gaps. Keep kids and pets off treated areas until dry, and follow your technician's instructions.

Renting out the efficiency? See the landlord turnover checklist.

Our general pest plan is $125 per quarter, about $42 a month, and monthly or custom schedules are quoted after the inspection. For plan customers: "If pests come back between visits, so do we, at no extra cost." There are no long-term contracts and no cancellation fees, just a simple service agreement. We're family-run and licensed, with 30+ years in the business, and hablamos español. See pest control in Hialeah, rodent control in Hialeah, roach control in Hialeah and the older homes and Little Havana section of pest control in Miami. Browse more guides.